Caster.



' sTATEs PATENT onnicn.

wrmlrm'nnomaor oovnzs, murmur, Assmiron r0 soLouon rmnmn, or I y U mrmonn, uaarmnn.

casrnn.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM T. HORMES, a citizen of the United States,.residing at Govans, in the county of Baltimore and State of Maryland, have invented new and useful Improvements in Casters, of which the following is a specification.

This invention is an improved caster of the type commonly employed for movably supportin articles of furniture, sliding doors, an the like, although its use is not limited to any particular or specific class ofv such articles.

One of the specific uses of the invention is for supporting the slidable doors or panels of display racks, or similar articles. Display racksof the rotary inclosed type, for displaying ready made garments and the like, have come into general use, and are usually constructed of glass walls or panels, so that the goods on display may be readily seen by prospective customers passing the same, the front wall of a case or compartment being usually made up of slidable doors or sections, which may be moved to one side, to permit access to the articles within the case. In order that the articleson display may be protected from dust, and the like, it is desirable, and in fact important, that a substantially close contact be maintained between the edges of the door and the surfaces with which they cooperate. One of the objects of the invention is to provide a caster designed to'meet the requirements. .A further object is to provlde a caster constructed to'permit of attachment to the article which it is intended to support, in such manner that all of the working parts are concealed, except so much of the supporting roller as is necessary to raise said article clear of the surface from which it is supported. A further object is to provide means to effect adjustment of the supporting roller with respect to the article to which the caster is attached, whereby said article may be raised or lowered, and also to provide means to permit of a swiveling movement of the roller, when the article is moved, without affecting the adjustment. A further object is to provide means for effectively locking the parts in any adjusted relation, so as to maintain thedesired adjustment, and without affecting the swivelmg movement of the roller when the article is moved.

set forth and particularly Specification of mm; Patent. P t t July 30, 191

Application filed October 5, 1916. Serial No. 123,875.

The invention will be hereinafter fully pointed out in the clalms. v

In the accompanying drawing Figure 1 is a side elevation of a portion of a. sliding door, with the invention attached thereto. Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view. Fig. 3 is a sectional view. Fig. 4 is an end 'view illustrating the caster detached from the door.

Referring to the drawing, 10 designates a portion of the rail. of a sliding door or panel, provided with a recess 11 leading in from one face, near the lower edge thereof. The open sides of the recess 11, are closed by means of a carrier member consisting of an 'L-shaped face plate or attaching dev1ce 12, secured to the door by means of screws 13, the lower arm of said carrier.

member being shaped to engage the lower edge of a doorand having a clrcular opening 14 therein. Projecting inwardly from the upright portion of the carrier member 12, 1s 2. lug or supporting portion 15 provided with a threaded opening which is engaged by the threads of a carrier member 16, the lower end of which is provided with a flange 17 inclosing a chamber 18 forming a ball race for antifriction balls 19, resting upon an annular shoulder 20, of the caster member 21. Said caster member is provided with a shank" 22, extended longitudinally through the bore of the carrier member, the upper end of said shank being spread, as indicated at 23, to permit of relative ro tation of the caster member and the carrier member, without permitting longitudinal separation thereof.- The caster 24 is rotatably mounted-upon a pin 25, carried by the lower forked portion of the caster mem her. The upper end of the carrier member .is provided with spaced apart slot-like re-.

,member, whereby said supporting member may be rotated to effect vertical adjustment thereof with respect to the carrier member. After the desired adjustment is obtained, rotation of the carrier member is prevented by means of a set screw 28, carried by the carrier member 12.

The invention is illustrated and described as attached to the slidable door of a dis lay rack, but its use is not limited to sli able doors or panels, it being capable of use in connection with any article to which a caster may ordinarily be applied. When the caster I is used upon a door as'above described, it

may,-under some conditions, be desirable to have the roller 24 run in a track. A U- shaped track 29, preferably of channel iron, is illustrated in the drawing.

In practice, the threaded portion of the carrier member 16 is engaged with the complemental threaded portion of the lug 15, and the face plate or attaching device 12 is then secured in position over the recess 11. The carrier member 16 is then rotated to cause the roller 24 to protrude from the recess 11 the desired extent, such rotation being eifected by engaging the slots 26, and moving the carrier member in the desired direction, by means of a suitable tool, suchas a screw driver, inserted through the open ing 27. When the desired adjustment has been obtained, the set screw 28 is adjusted to engage the periphery of the carrier mem ber, thereby locking said carrier member against rotation, and maintaining it and the lockin member in the desired adjusted relation. hould it become necessary or desirable to change the adjustment, the set screw 28 is unscrewed a suflicient distance to permit of rotation of the carrier member, and the latter may be rotated in a manner already described, the set screw 28 being again tightened after the adjustment.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the invention provides an adjustable caster which is simple in construction and in which the working parts are concealed, nothing being exposed except the exterior of thefface of the forms in which it may be made, or-

plate or attaching device, and so much of the roller 24 as is necessary to support the door clear of the surface on which the caster runs. It will also be readily seen that the caster may freely swivel under; the operation of the door, without disturbing any adjustment which may have been made. It will be further observed that where a plurality of casters are employed to sustain a movable article, they may be individually adjustedwithout' difiiculty, so as to maintain said article perfectly level, and in the case of a'door, so that the said door may move without binding.

Having thus explained the nature of the invention, and described an operative manner of constructing and using the same, although without attempting to set forth all all of the forms of its use, the following is claimed 1. An im(proved.caster comprising a face plate provi ed with a slot and an internally threaded supporting member projecting from one face thereof below said slot an externally threaded carrier member ad ustably engaging the threaded portion of said supporting member, and a taster member having a swiveled engagement with said carrier member, said carrier member hav ing means whereby it may be engaged by a tool inserted through said slot.

2. An improved caster comprising a. face plate provided with an internally threaded supporting member projecting from one face thereof, an externally threaded carrier member adjustably engaging the threaded portion of said supportingmember, a caster member having a swiveled engagement with taching device provided with an angularly' disposed member having a threaded 0 ening, a second threaded opening exten ing inwardly 'from the exterior of the attaching device and intersecting the 'first mentioned threaded opening, a threaded carrier member adjustably engaging the first mentioned threaded opening, a caster member having a swiveled engagement with said carrier member, and a screw working in the second mentioned threaded opening and positioned to engage said carrier member.

5. An improved caster comprising an attaching devlce formed with a plate portion for engaging one edge of a door and having an angularly disposed member provided with a threaded portion and a slot contiguous to said threaded supporting portion, a threaded carrier member adjustably engaging said threaded supporting portion and having notches contiguous to said. slot, a caster member having a swiveled engagement with said carrier member, and-means for normally preventing relative rotation of said carrier member and said supporting portion.

6. An improvement in casters comprising a caster memberprovided with a roller, a

carrier member having a swivel connection with the caster member, said carrier member being provided with peripheral recesses near one end. and a supporting member having a threaded engagement with said carrier member and having an opening contiguous to the recessed portion of said supporting member.

7. As an improvement in casters, the combination with a: movable member having a recess therem, of a supporting member located within said recess and attached'to said movable member and having athreaded portion in said recess, a carrier member engaging the threaded portion of said supporting member, and a caster member having a swiveled connection with said carrier member.

8. As an improvement in casters, the combination with a door having a recess therein, of asupporting member attached to said door, said supporting member having a por tion projecting into the recess, a carrier member having a threaded engagement with said projecting portion, and a caster memher having a 'swivele'd connection with said carrier member.

9. An improved caster comprising a face plate provided with a lug projecting from one face thereof, an elongated tubular carrier member adjustably engaging said lug and havin an annular flange shaped to form a bal race, and a caster member havng a stem extending entirely through said carrier member and a flattened surface opposite to the said annular flange, and antifriction balls-between said flange and said flattened surface.

10. An improved caster comprising a face plate provided with a relatively thick supporting lug projecting from one face thereof, an elongated tubular carrier member passed through and adjustably engaging said lug, and a caster member having a shank passed entirely through said carrier member, the upper end of said shank being shaped to prevent removal thereof from said carrier member. I

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set m hand.

y WILLIAM T. v HORMES. 

